FWP Commission Adjusts Black Bear Validation Requirement

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks
Source: http://fwp.mt.gov/
Published: Mar. 25, 2010

A change in Montana's 2010 spring black bear hunting regulations requiring hunters to validate their licenses for use in northwestern Montana, in an area where it was not previously required, was revisited earlier this week by the Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Commission. With the commission?s action via conference call Tuesday spring black bear hunters now need to validate their license to hunt in northwestern Montana?s Bear Management Units 100, 102, 104, 105 and 108. Those who validate for BMUs 100, 102, 104, 105, and 108 cannot legally hunt anywhere else in FWP?s Region 1, which is headquartered in Kalispell. With the adjustment, however, they can now legally hunt black bears in the rest of the state. Last year, hunters were required to validate for spring bear hunts in a different set of BMUs in northwestern Montana, which in part led to confusion among hunters and to Tuesday?s action by the FWP Commission. Those hunters who have already purchased a bear license with an incorrect validation can exchange them through April 15 at any FWP office for a new license that is properly validated. Hunters who purchase black bear licenses after April 15 must obtain them over the counter at an FWP office and cannot use them for five days after the purchase date. Bear hunters must also successfully complete FWP?s bear ID training prior to purchasing a black bear license. FWP urges black bear hunters to refresh their bear identification skills every year to be able to distinguish a black bear from a grizzly. Grizzly bears, a federally protected, threatened species, are not hunted in Montana. To locate the online FWP bear ID test, go to Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Bear Identification Program . To review the online 2010 black bear regulations, go to the FWP Web site at fwp.mt.gov and click on the Hunting page and then Regulations.

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